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Mayhem disrupts evacuation CNN — Permalink NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) — Police and National Guard troops struggled to restore order Thursday in New Orleans, where gunfire, looting and small fires have disrupted efforts to evacuate the flooded city. | |
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Jack Grant: If anyone had any questions... ...they should have been answered by now, we are seeing what the Apocalypse will look like; how fragile the veneer of civilization truly is. Matt Singer: You have to donate — From CNN: "DESPAIR, DEATH PERVADE NEW ORLEANS "Thousands of people forced from their homes by... Damian Penny: Unspeakable — I can't even begin to comprehend this: New Orleans' Charity Hospital halted efforts to evacuate its... |
Donald Sensing: Update: CNN's reporter Chris Lawrence reports from New Orleans' convention center, [snipped quote] There are many more... Laura Rozen: Oh No. The evacuation of New Orleans' Charity Hospital, long awaited by its desperate staff and patients, has been halted because of sniper fire. DC Media Girl: Completely out of control — More terrible news out of the flood zone: Lt. Col. Pete Schneider of the National Guard... |
| Also: Faiz @ThinkProgress, Talking Dog, Ed Kilgore, Echidne, James Joyner, Ann Althouse, Hilzoy @ObsidianWings, Judd @ThinkProgress | |
Unrest Intensifies at Superdome Shelter AP — Permalink NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Fights and trash fires broke out, rescue helicopters were shot at and anger mounted across New Orleans on Thursday, as National Guardsmen in armored vehicles poured in to help restore order across this increasingly desperate and lawless city. | |
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Steve Bainbridge: Somebody somewhere soon is probably going to have make that very call, given the way things are heading down in New Orleans. Ed Cone: AP: Outside the Convention Center, the sidewalks were packed with people without food, water or medical care, and with no sign of law enforcement. Atrios: Bush to Victims: Just Die AP: Fury rose among many of those evacuated. |
Kieran Healy: The reports of what's happening convey little except how poorly-prepared, ill-coordinated and slow-moving the disaster response is. Joe Gandelman: Another AP story noted growing unrest there: "Fights and trash fires broke out at the hot and stinking Superdome and... Scared Monkeys: September 1st, 2005 by Scared Monkeys —> These were the words said by President George W. Bush as Air Force One flew... |
| Also: Laura Rozen, John @AmericaBlog, Kash, Gary Farber | |
Hastert Questions Rebuilding New Orleans AP — Permalink WASHINGTON — It makes no sense to spend billions of dollars to rebuild a city that's seven feet under sea level, House Speaker Dennis Hastert said of federal assistance for hurricane-devastated New Orleans. | |
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Tom Maguire: And House Speaker Dennis Hastert made grumbling noises (from which he backpedaled) about the cost and sanity (my word) of rebuilding parts of New Orleans. Donald Sensing: Now there's Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert: "It makes no sense to spend billions of dollars to rebuild a city... McQ: Sometimes its better to keep your stupid pie hole shut — I mean really: "It makes no sense to spend billions of... |
Kevin Drum: Mike Brown, Director of FEMA, referring to people who were stuck in New Orleans largely because they were too poor to... Dwight Meredith: The Post: "It makes no sense to spend billions of dollars to rebuild a city that's seven feet under sea level, House... |
Police and Owners Begin to Challenge Looters NYT — Permalink NEW ORLEANS, Aug. 31 - In a city shut down for business, the Rite Aid at Oak and South Carrollton was wide open on Wednesday. Someone had stolen a forklift, driven it four blocks, peeled up the security gate and smashed through the front door. | |
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Joe Gandelman: But the smell of anarchy wasn't only at the Superdome, this New York Times report suggests, but in the (often flooded)... Jeff Goldstein: And what he needs to do is what needs to be done—even if it means Shepard Smith will go blind whacking at his own... La Shawn Barber: Police and Owners Begin to Challenge Looters Peggy Noonan: "As for the tragic piggism that is taking place on the... |
Shawn @LiquidList: First, Bush has obviously screwed up, again —> 1, 2, 3 Second, humanity sure is weird —> 1, 2, 3 And third, where are our Democrats? Gal Beckerman: At the very least, those pieces that explore the now widespread looting or the sad and odorous fate of those who took... Jesse Walker: Meanwhile, The New York Times offers a lesson in the value of gun ownership: "Paul Cosma, 47, who owns a nearby auto... |
| Also: Steve Antler, Dr. Steven Taylor, Gary Farber, Glenn Reynolds, Spoons | |
Trapped in an Arena of Suffering By / LAT — Permalink NEW ORLEANS — A 2-year-old girl slept in a pool of urine. Crack vials littered a restroom. Blood stained the walls next to vending machines smashed by teenagers. The Louisiana Superdome, once a mighty testament to architecture and ingenuity, became the biggest storm shelter in New Orleans the day before Katrina's arrival Monday. | |
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Scott Mehno: (Scott Gold's LA Times piece comes the closest â" describing Superdome refugees forced to sleep in their own... Amanda Marcotte: None whatsoever. [snipped quote] No reason Planned Parenthood would do this but pure evil, huh? Ann Althouse: Reported in the L.A. Times: [snipped quote] What plan did this city have for evacuation of the poor? |
Captain Ed: During the day, many reports of perfectly awful news stories, but I'm not going to focus on that now. Joe Gandelman: Meanwhile, the LA Times paints a picture of the Superdrome as a once-proud structure and makeshift emergency shelter... Gary Farber: THE HORROR. Trapped in an Arena of Suffering and Harry Connick, Jr. "the only authority". It's going surreal now. |
| Also: Jeralyn Merritt | |
SIGHTINGS New York Post — Permalink SECRETARY of State Condoleeza Rice, here on three days' vacation to shop and see the U.S. Open, hitting some balls with retired champ Monica Seles at the Indoor Tennis Club at... To read this story... Forgot your password? | |
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Susie Madrak: And Page Six reports that she's also working on her backhand with Monica Seles. Shawn @LiquidList: Politics: Condi Still On Vacation — Via Americablog we learn that Condi Rice is in New York City, still on vacation,... John @AmericaBlog: From today's NY Post: "SIGHTINGS: September 1, 2005 — SECRETARY of State Condoleeza Rice, here on three days' vacation... |
Steve Soto: She was going to Spam-a-Lot on Broadway, hitting tennis balls with Monica Seles, and buying thousands of dollars of new shoes in New York this morning at Ferragamo's. Jeralyn Merritt: Condi Rice Shops for Shoes, Works on Backhand — Condi Rice should expect some heat over this: [snipped quote] She's also working on her backhand with Monica Sales at the U.S. Open. |
Bush insists help is on the way BBC — Permalink US President George Bush has admitted there is "frustration" at the speed of the relief effort following Hurricane Katrina's hit on the Gulf Coast. "I fully understand people wanting things to have happened yesterday. | |
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Tacitus: The NYT's bizarre fantasies of being ravished by the Leader notwithstanding, there is a definitive public role for a President in these circumstances. ArchPundit: From the BBC. I've stayed away from any of this until this just blew my mind: [quote] "I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees.[end quote] Steve Soto: Bush, to the knee-padded Dianne Sawyer on ABC's Good Morning America, this morning. |
Armando @DailyKos: Update [2005-9-1 12:27:7 by Armando]: Nomadic's Recommended Diary has this from the bbc: [snipped quote] So he admitted his incompetence. DavidNYC @DailyKos: "- President Bush, September 1, 2005 It was a broiling August afternoon in New Orleans, Louisiana, the Big Easy, the City That Care Forgot." Cookie Jill: "- bbc" many sources disagree... "no one can say they didn't see it coming. |
Special Dispatch Series - No. 977 MEMRI — Permalink In reaction to Hurricane Katrina and the destruction in its wake, a high-ranking Kuwaiti official, Muhammad Yousef Al-Mlaifi, who is director of the Kuwaiti Ministry of Endowment's research center, published an article titled "The Terrorist Katrina is One of the Soldiers of Allah, But Not an Adherent of Al-Qaeda." | |
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Arthur Chrenkoff: Kennedy Jr. finds himself on the same wavelength as Muhammad Yousef Al-Mlaifi, director of the Kuwaiti Ministry of... |
Alcibiades @KesherTalk: In it, the writer, Muhammad Yousef Al-Mlaifi, who is the director of the Kuwaiti Ministry of Endowment's research center proclaims Hurricane Katrina to be the workings of Allah |
Fats Domino Is Missing in New Orleans By / AP — Permalink NEW YORK - Fats Domino was missing Thursday, days after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, said his longtime agent, Al Embry. Embry told The Associated Press that he hadn't been able to contact Domino since talking to him Sunday evening by phone. | |
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James Joyner: Katrina: Fats Domino Is Missing in New Orleans — Blues legend Fats Domino, who found his thrill on Blueberry Hill, is missing in New Orleans along with his entire family. Avedon Carol: "Fixing The Intelligence" Over Lockerbie Fats Domino Is Missing in New Orleans. |
Gateway Pundit: Where's Fats Domino? Word is out that Fats Domino has not been heard from since Hurricane Katrina. Ed Driscoll: At least, hopefully he's still alive—he's been reported missing in New Orleans, where he's resided for many years. |
Exodus From New Orleans Continues Amid Chaos WaPo — Permalink Meanwhile, elected leaders from the president on down faced aggressive questioning on morning TV shows about the pace of rescue and relief operations. President Bush, in a rare appearance on morning television, said he understood the "frustration" of... | |
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Garance Franke-Ruta: President George W. Bush, 9/1/05 (via WaPo): [snipped quote] There's a big difference between pointing out the... Jeralyn Merritt: He said, "I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees." Really? |
Kos @DailyKos: Heh — The wingutosphere was in a twitter when I said yesterday that Katrina was worse than 9-11. It was. |
Flood-control funds short of requests Chicago Tribune — Permalink WASHINGTON — Despite continuous warnings that a catastrophic hurricane could hit New Orleans, the Bush administration and Congress in recent years have repeatedly denied full funding for hurricane preparation and flood control. | |
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John @PowerLine: Of course, the alleged "underfunding" of the levee project didn't just start this year: "A corps plan to shore up the... Joe Gandelman: Meanwhile, there's an even bigger political problem looming for Bush (and Congress) when the water has receeded: report... Josh Marshall: Then there's this piece in the Chicago Tribune. |
Avedon Carol: Even The Chicago Tribune admits it: "Despite continuous warnings that a catastrophic hurricane could hit New Orleans,... Todd Gitlin: This from Andrew Martin and Andrew Zajac in the Chicago Tribune joins John Vidal and Duncan Campbell in The Guardian,... |
New Orleans Mayor Issues 'Desperate SOS' By / AP — Permalink NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Storm victims were raped and beaten, fights and fires broke out, corpses lay out in the open, and rescue helicopters and law enforcement officers were shot at as flooded-out New Orleans descended into anarchy Thursday. "This is a desperate SOS," the mayor said. | |
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DC Media Girl: Deteriorating rapidly — More horrors from the AP: NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Storm victims were raped and beaten, fights and... Joe @AmericaBlog: AP describes the scene: [snipped quote] Meanwhile, Condi's playing tennis, Cabinet secretaries are trying to get their... |
Oliver Willis: "— AP UPDATE: Dennis Hastert says it "doesn't make sense" to rebuild New Orleans. What the eff is wrong with these people? Rod Dreher: GUY HAS A POINT — From an Associated Press dispatch, bad news for the president from a grassroots political analysis: ... |
Chaotic scene at convention center MSNBC — Permalink After spending the morning shooting some chaotic scenes at the New Orleans Convention Center, NBC Photojournalist Tony Zumbado joined MSNBC's Alison Stewart to describe the scene. To read an excerpt of their conversation, continue to the text below. | |
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Gal Beckerman: Distortion — By Omission, Not Commission NBC photojournalist Tony Zumbado looked visibly shaken this afternoon when he spoke on MSNBC with Alison Stewart. |
Brian Stelter: "They are transcendant images and comments from Americans who followed the rules and saw the system break down around... |
Intricate Flood Protection Long a Focus of Dispute NYT — Permalink The 17th Street levee that gave way and led to the flooding of New Orleans was part of an intricate, aging system of barriers and pumps that was so chronically underfinanced that senior regional officials of the Army Corps of Engineers complained about it publicly for years. | |
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John Cole: Some more info rolling in on the levee that failed: In an interview last night, Mr. Naomi said the cuts had made it... |
Erick @RedState: But, in a New York Times article lamenting the fact that the 2004 budget cut funds for levee repairs and subtly casting... |
News Analysis: Hard New Test for President By / NYT — Permalink WASHINGTON, Aug. 31 - Not since he sat in a Florida classroom as the World Trade Center burned a thousand miles away has President Bush faced a test quite like the one he returned to Washington to confront this afternoon. | |
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Michael @AmericaBlog: The New York Times makes clear this is Bush's biggest test since 9-11, one that in many ways is more complicated. Susie Madrak: More from the MBA President Thanks to Diebold et al, we have this dimwit instead of a real president: But the... TheAnchoress: Sanger does what Fournier couldn't He has written a very fair-minded analysis on what the president faces, and the political ramifications thereof. |
Liz Cox Barrett: Like Fournier, Curtius and Chin end their piece ominously, with a quote from Keith Ashdown of "congressional watchdog... Ann Althouse: David Sanger of the NYT analyzes the Bush response to Katrina and compares it to his response to 9/11: [snipped quote] We all need to hope for Bush to succeed in this. |
Chaos in increasingly desperate New Orleans AP — Permalink NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (AP) — Fights and trash fires broke out at the hot and stinking Superdome and anger and unrest mounted across New Orleans on Thursday, as National Guardsmen in armored vehicles poured in to help restore order across the increasingly lawless and desperate city. | |
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Randall Parker: A helicopter evacuation service had to be suspended due to fears of gunfire. |
Ann Althouse: "What is going on in the United States? James Ridgeway writes in the Village Voice: "Why won't Bush take decisive action in the Hurricane Katrina disaster and send in the military? |
THE BIG ONE New Orleans Times-Picayune — Permalink The line of splintered planks, trash and seaweed scattered along the slope of New Orleans' lakefront levees on Hayne Boulevard in late September 1998 marked more than just the wake of Hurricane Georges. It measured the slender margin separating the city from mass destruction. | |
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Steve @BeggingToDiffer: ON THE BREACH — There's a lively debate in the comment section to Kriston's post below wherein he takes George W. Bush... MarkInMexico: Note: For some reason, only part of this report is making it to the blogosphere. I urge you to read it all. |
Kevin Drum: BUSH AND KATRINA....Echidne of the Snakes reports that on Good Morning America today, George Bush said: "I don't think anyone anticipated the breach of the levees." |
Waiting for a Leader NYT — Permalink George W. Bush gave one of the worst speeches of his life yesterday, especially given the level of national distress and the need for words of consolation and wisdom. In what seems to be a ritual in this administration, the president appeared a day later than he was needed. | |
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Chuck Gutenson: For my money, I think the truth is closer to Arianna's post or the NYT, who characterized the president's speech last night as the worst ever. Barbara O'Brien: But the fact that the New Pravda editorialized about Bush's lack of leadership today actually gives me hope that the media will no longer be Bush's co-dependents. John Cole: Well, for me it isn't, but it is for the NY Times, the dKos, and a lot of Democrats. |
Laura Rozen: "Waiting for a Leader": the NYT editorial speaks for many here: [snipped quote] As reader J noted in an email this... Susie Madrak: Meanwhile, as the "better late than never, we've finally realized by making fun of Al Gore's sweaters, we put these... James Joyner: Waiting for a Leader "George W. Bush gave one of the worst speeches of his life yesterday, especially given the level... |
| Also: Riggsveda @Corrente, Attaturk, Oliver Willis, Don, Kash, Richard TPD, Jeralyn Merritt, Steve Soto, Jack Grant, Tom Tomorrow, Admin @ThinkProgress, Roger Ailes, Steve M., Kathryn Jean Lopez, Echidne | |
The Storm After the Storm By / NYT — Permalink Hurricanes come in two waves. First comes the rainstorm, and then comes what the historian John Barry calls the "human storm" - the recriminations, the political conflict and the battle over compensation. Floods wash away the surface of society, the settled way things have been done. | |
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Jo Fish: Flashback... David Brooks recent column about the looming issues of race and disaster recovery made me think of one thing. Gal Beckerman: Lo and behold, a certain conservative New York Times columnist agrees with us. Kieran Healy: For example, on the conservative side of the fence, the contrast between David Brooks and Jonah Goldberg (also here) is striking. |
Chuck Gutenson: Sadly, as David Brooks and others have noted, those suffering are disproportionately the poor and those otherwise on the margins. Damian Penny: Update: David Brooks compares Hurricane Katrina to other catastrophic natural disasters which have struck the United States, and the political fallout which resulted from each. Michael @AmericaBlog: Open Thread — And even milquetoast conservative David Brooks sees the political and social faultlines here: "But take a... |
| Also: Rich Lowry, Attaturk | |
A Dearth of Answers By / WaPo — Permalink Diane Sawyer's rare live interview with President Bush this morning on ABC's Good Morning America exposed one of the president's greatest weaknesses: He doesn't have the answers to some of the most important questions. | |
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Jesse Taylor: This is how he's been acting about terrorism and Iraq since 2001. Brad DeLong: Dan Froomkin writes: A Dearth of Answers: Diane Sawyer's rare live interview with President Bush this morning on ABC's... |
Michelle Pilecki: Michelle Pilecki: A Flood of Cassandras — When President Bush piped up on "Good Morning America" today and said, "I... Gary Farber: Our President, this morning: [snipped quote] I've been laying off the political stuff, so far, as well as the backward... |
Officials Struggle to Reverse a Growing Sense of Anarchy NYT — Permalink NEW ORLEANS, Sept. 1 - National Guard troops moved in force into this storm-ravaged city today as state and local officials struggled to reverse a growing sense of anarchy sparked by reports of armed looters, bodies floating untended in stagnant floodwaters, and food and water supplies dwindling for thousands of trapped and desperate residents. | |
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Matthew Yglesias: Not Enough Troops — I don't know all the ins-and-outs, but when you read about the looting going on in New Orleans and... |
Ezra Klein: Donate — C'mon folks — the blogosphere gave more than this to Paul Hackett...and great as he is and important as his race was, it all just pales in comparison. |
A Diminished FEMA Scrambles to the Rescue By / LAT — Permalink WASHINGTON — In 2001, the Federal Emergency Management Agency concluded that a catastrophic hurricane in New Orleans was "among the three likeliest ... disasters facing this country." | |
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Jeralyn Merritt: Since Bush moved it into Homeland Security, critics say that disaster relief has gotten the short shrift compared to counter-terrorism related activities. Aziz Poonawalla: At least nine articles in the Times-Picayune from 2004 and 2005 specifically cite the cost of Iraq as a reason for the... |
Kevin Drum: 2003: Under its new organization chart within DHS, FEMA's preparation and planning functions are reassigned to a new Office of Preparedness and Response. |
Bush warns: No gouging Reuters — Permalink WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush warned Thursday against price-gouging of gasoline in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and said looters should be treated with zero tolerance. | |
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Tyler Cowen: When such a disaster comes, should we waive price gouging laws, and temporarily repeal liability for those helping strangers? Bryan Caplan: No, this isn't from Bush's "zero tolerance" on "gouging" speech. The words are too big. |
James Joyner: Bush: Zero Tolerance for Looters — President Bush today declared that there should be "zero tolerance" for looters and price gougers. |
Pentagon Finds More Who Recall Atta Intel By / AP — Permalink WASHINGTON — Pentagon officials said Thursday they have found three more people who recall an intelligence chart that identified Sept. 11 mastermind Mohamed Atta as a terrorist one year before the attacks on New York and Washington. | |
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Captain Ed: Able Danger: Pentagon Finds Three More Witnesses — The naysayers of the 9/11 Commission took another blow to their... |
Tom Maguire: Able Danger - Pentagon Press Briefing — The Pentagon held a press briefing on Able Danger today, and the Associated... |
No plan ever made to help New Orleans' most vulnerable By / Atlanta Journal-Constitution — Permalink Each time you hear a federal, state or city official explain what he or she is doing to help New Orleans, consider the opening paragraphs of a July 24 story in the New Orleans Times-Picayune. | |
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Joe Gandelman: An even larger question that's already being asked is whether plans in place tried to find way to help people who might... La Shawn Barber: On Responsibility — [snipped quote] I agree. |
Ezra Klein: No. But if FEMA's report naming a massive hurricane in New Orleans as one of the three likeliest catastrophes had been... Jeff Jarvis: Does the government there bear some responsibility for not having adequate means to evactuate those who could not get out on their own, on buses, trains, or any means possible? |
Bush warns against price gouging on gasoline prices Reuters — Permalink WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush warned against price-gouging of gasoline on Thursday in reaction to the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and said looters should be treated with zero tolerance. | |
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Joe Gandelman: This morning Bush warned against price gouging of gasoline. (NOTE: Rumors are swirling. Mark Kleiman: I'm not sure whether I should be more amused than disgusted, or the other way around, to find that George W. Bush, who... |
James Joyner: Bush warns against price gouging on gasoline prices (Reuters) (see CNN version here) "President Bush warned against... Julian Sanchez: Bush said this morning: "I think there ought to be zero tolerance of people breaking the law during an emergency such as... |
Cries for help spread across New Orleans MSNBC — Permalink NEW ORLEANS - Thousands of desperate, stranded residents begged for help Thursday as conditions deteriorated here, with heavy rain compounding a tense situation that led to fights, fires and fears for the safety of emergency responders. | |
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Scared Monkeys: The chaos that develops for many reason has now spread thoughBussuperdome2_hmed_ 6a7 New Orleans in the form of desperation, looting and crime. Laura Rozen: "Cries for help spread across New Orleans: Local Officials blame FEMA for 'nationl disgrace,' mayor issues 'SOS'. |
Matt Singer: From MSNBC: "CRIES FOR HELP SPREAD ACROSS NEW ORLEANS "'Hospitals are trying to evacuate,' said Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. |
Superdome Evacuation Halted Amid Gunfire AP — Permalink NEW ORLEANS — The evacuation of the Superdome was suspended Thursday after shots were reported fired at a military helicopter and arson fires broke out outside the arena. No immediate injuries were reported. | |
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Joe Gandelman: It reached its culmination today when the Superdome's evacuation was halted due to gunfire, as the AP reports: "The... Will Collier: Enough's Enough — Reports are coming in that the Superdome evacuation had to be stopped because looters are shooting at the rescue helicopters. Lindsay Beyerstein: Superdome evacuation halted amid gunfire "Superdome Evacuation Halted Amid Gunfire Associated Press September 1, 2005,... |
Judith Weiss: Both papers report on the horrible conditions inside the Superdome, where evacuations have been intermittant due to sporadic gunfire. Montag: Read the whole thing from Associated Press it is a nightmare: Superdome Evacuation Halted Amid Gunfire |
Congress to Vote on $10B Katrina Package By / AP — Permalink (09-01) 13:19 PDT WASHINGTON, (AP) — The Bush administration intends to seek more than $10 billion to cover immediate relief needs in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, congressional officials said Thursday, and lawmakers made plans to approve the request by the weekend. | |
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Brad Plumer: Alongside everything else that can be said about Hurricane Katrina, Dennis Hastert of all people asks the offensive-but-important question: Should New Orleans even be rebuilt? |
Barbara O'Brien: House Speaker Dennis Hastert is getting flack for something he said this morning: "Despite the haste involved in... |
New bankruptcy law a problem for Katrina victims By / Reuters — Permalink NEW YORK, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Hurricane Katrina is expected to cause a spurt of bankruptcy filings by storm victims — and sweeping changes in U.S. bankruptcy laws may leave them even more strapped than they otherwise might be. | |
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Oliver Willis: Reality Invalidates Conservative Ideology, Part 2 — It continues Hurricane Katrina is expected to cause a spurt of... |
James Joyner: Katrina: New Bankruptcy Law May Hurt Hurricane Victims — New bankruptcy law a problem for Katrina victims (Reuters) [snipped quote] This one seems an easy fix. |
Stories of heartbreak and hope in Katrina's wake CNN — Permalink What Is This? CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta in Baton Rouge, Mississippi Doctors told me that while trying to evacuate critical patients from Charity Hospital in New Orleans, two of the evacuation vehicles came under fire. | |
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Tom Smith: This is just wrong — This is inexcusable. |
Echidne: Katrina 4 — A man covers the body of a man who died Thursday outside the Convention Center in New Orleans And this is... |
Vacation Ends, and Crisis Management Begins By / WaPo — Permalink ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE, Aug. 31 — As his blue-and-white jet swooped low over New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, President Bush pressed his face against the window and stared out at oblivion. He saw an expansive lake where a storied city used to be. | |
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Liz Cox Barrett: Peter Baker of the Washington Post also comments that "the latest crisis facing Bush is already converging with the previous two (bad news in Iraq and rising gas prices)." Mark Kleiman: From his keyboard to God's browser — From today's WaPo: As his blue-and-white jet swooped low over New Orleans and the... |
Taegan Goddard: A Washington Post piece notes that "with poll numbers already at an all-time low, Bush faces a stiff leadership test." |
The Great Flood of '05 WaPo — Permalink "I had read of the destruction of Babylon, of Nineveh, and many other soul-stirring and awful human experiences recorded in history . . . at length I realized that San Francisco was about to suffer an effacement as complete as any that had ever taken place." | |
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Joe Gandelman: A Washington Post editorial today, calling the New Orleans floods one of the greatest natural disasters in US history,... Jim Romenesko: WP editorial board, WP writer differ on Bush's performance — Washington Post > From today's Post editorial: "So far,... Steve Soto: Even the Washington Post got in a few mild shots in the last paragraph of their lead editorial Thursday, but alas, not as sharply as the Times. |
John @AmericaBlog: To wit, today's editorial: "So far, the federal government's immediate response to the destruction of one of the... McQ: In an editorial today in the Washington Post they said: "Congress, when it returns, should rise above the blame game and... |
TV Networks Navigate Floodwaters To Get on Air By / WaPo — Permalink CBS News sent a boat packed with supplies — including desperately needed fuel — to rendezvous with its crew hunkered down in New Orleans. CNN was securing boats to navigate the flood zones and checked into renting dump trucks (the better to plow through rising waters). | |
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Gary Farber: There's a little bit more. More here. Jack Shafer points out the press ignoring all issues of race and class. Jim Romenesko: > "I never anticipated covering a story in the continental US like this" (WP) > People most in need of info were least likely to read, see or hear it (WP) |
Guest Blogger: A "Third World Story" — Continuing our Katrina coverage for a bit longer, The Post and NYTimes look at the media... |
After the Storm By / Opinion Journal — Permalink Katrina is a huge and historic story. The human cost, the financial cost, the rendering uninhabitable of a great and fabled American city—all of it amazing. A quick look at the good, the bad, and the let's-shoot-them-now. • The governors. | |
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Scott Mehno: In her WSJ column on September 1st, Ms. Noonan felt it necessary to keep score of the tragedy so far, as if it were akin... Jeff Goldstein: See also, Volokh, Althouse, and Peggy Noonan. Opposing viewpoints here, here, and here. Ann Althouse: Peggy Noonan on the looters: [snipped quote] Let me quote this commenter from one of yesterday's threads on this blog: "I work in New Orleans East. |
Steve Bainbridge: Shooting Looters: Morally Licit? Peggy Noonan calls for shooting looters. LaShawn Barber calls for shooting them on sight. Roy @Alicublog: But her flood column sounds like a condolence memo from a public relations executive. Rich Lowry: PEGGY IS... ...mixed on Bush: "The political subtext: Does he understand that what has happened in our gulf is as important as what is happening in the other gulf? |
Katrina's Lesson in Readiness By / WaPo — Permalink Even as the Gulf Coast states battle to recover from Hurricane Katrina, Washington should take heed of the chaos surrounding the early relief effort. If this is what happens when the nation has two days of advance warning, imagine the aftermath of a surprise attack using a chemical, biological or nuclear device. | |
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Mary @LeftCoaster: Yet despite the warnings the preparation for the disaster was definitely bollixed up. |
Barbara O'Brien: As Paul Light writes in WaPo, "If this is what happens when the nation has two days of advance warning, imagine the... |
Shopped Out? WSJ — Permalink The free-spending U.S. consumer has been fueling economic growth for years. But with prices at the pump creeping ever higher and signs of a slowing housing market starting to emerge, will the credit cards finally be put away? | |
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Barry L. Ritholtz: Shopped Out? in Economy | Retail > I participated in a discussion in today's WSJ's (the free Econoblog) on consumer spending, titled Shopped Out? |
Arnold Kling: Dear Prudence — In the latest blogger celebrity deathmatch, Andrew Samwick writes [snipped quote] So financial... |
'And Now We Are in Hell' By / WaPo — Permalink NEW ORLEANS, Aug. 31 — Rochelle Montrel, dedicated middle school teacher, thought she should stay in town to prepare for the first day of classes. "We have all this testing now, earlier and earlier," she said Wednesday, "and I wanted to be ready." | |
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Vanderleun: American Studies — The Four Levels of Hell ANN GERHART reports in'And Now We Are in Hell' Level 1: "On the... Gary Farber: Hard to read, endlessly harder to live through. The four levels of hell of the Superdome. Read The Rest Scale: 2.5 out of 5. John @AmericaBlog: Thursday's Wash Post [quote] "This is mass chaos," said Sgt. Jason Defess, 27, a National Guard military policeman who had been stationed on a ramp outside the Superdome since Monday.[end quote] |
Michelle Malkin: Superdome under siege. Hellish. Donald Sensing: Time to leaflet. Michael Crowley: From today's Washington Post: "Within the [Superdome] skyboxes, on the third level of hell, life was dark 24 hours a day, a place for abandonment and coupling. |
Jewish gunman was no terrorist, Israel rules Guardian — Permalink Four Arab Israelis shot dead by a soldier opposed to the closure of the Gaza Strip settlements are not victims of "terror" because their killer was Jewish, Israel's defence ministry has ruled, and so their families are not entitled to the usual compensation for life. | |
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Captain Ed: It should, and the explanation only makes it stranger: [snipped quote] Ariel Sharon diagnosed this attack perfectly, and the Defence Ministry should be ashamed of itself. Norm Geras: If the following report is accurate, therefore, then what it reports is shameful: [snipped quote] See also here and here. |
McQ: When the law fails — This is just .... dumb: [snipped quote] So tell me ... how was his act not "hostile to Israel"? |
Bipartisan intro set for Roberts hearings USA Today — Permalink WASHINGTON — Supreme Court nominee John Roberts will be introduced to the Senate Judiciary Committee next week by a centrist Democrat and a veteran Republican, an important symbolic boost for his confirmation prospects. | |
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Scott Shields: Bye Bye, Bayh — USA Today has the scoop. Evan Bayh will help introduce Supreme Court candidate John Roberts to the Senate Judiciary Committee next week. |
Taegan Goddard: Bayh Will Introduce Roberts — Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN) and Sen. John Warner (R-VA) "have agreed to appear" with Supreme... |
Gas prices, Iraq war batter president's approval rating By / USA Today — Permalink WASHINGTON — President Bush returned to the capital Wednesday after a month-long summer vacation with big problems on his agenda — from record-setting gas prices to unrelieved turmoil in Iraq — and with his standing in handling those issues in a slide. | |
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Heather Hurlburt: The coverage includes a political scientist calling Bush's current performance "the opposite of Teflon." |
Taegan Goddard: The Velcro President — A USA Today/CNN/Gallup Poll shows the toll from "casualties abroad and economic uncertainty at home" have battered President Bush's approval ratings. |
The Crescent City blues By / LAT — Permalink UNLIKE THOUSANDS of American families, my kin and I received at least one precious splash of good news from New Orleans. My daughter-in-law, Eva Hughes Raines, her 3-year-old daughter, Sasha, and the family pets fled town a full day ahead of the evacuation order. | |
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Jim Romenesko: Raines: What memorial would be fitting for New Orleans? |
Jeralyn Merritt: The New York Times writes in Waiting for a Leader: [snipped quote] The Los Angeles Times |
FDA Official Quits Over Delay on Plan B By / WaPo — Permalink The top Food and Drug Administration official in charge of women's health issues resigned yesterday in protest against the agency's decision to further delay a final ruling on whether the "morning-after pill" should be made more easily accessible. | |
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Tim Graham: (At least the Washington Post, unlike the New York Times, includes Wendy Wright at CWA to tag Wood as a feminist.) |
Chris Mooney: Back to the Politics of Science — Well, this issue couldn't stay repressed for long...and sure enough, a longtime FDA... |
Pakistan-Israel in landmark talks BBC — Permalink The foreign ministers of Pakistan and Israel have for the first time held publicly acknowledged talks. After the talks Pakistan's foreign minister said that his country had decided to "engage" with Israel after Israel's withdrawal from Gaza. | |
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Andrew Jaffee: Good News on Pakistani/Israeli Relations... Sort of... By Andrew L. Jaffee; netwmd.com In a surprise move, Pakistan and... |
Gateway Pundit: Pakistan & Israel Hold Historic Talks — Here is some encouraging news for the day: [snipped quote] Pakistan announced... |
One blog cuts through fog of war By / Boston Herald — Permalink A former Special Forces soldier is becoming an online media sensation with his vivid and sometimes brutal blog accounts and photos of the daily battles, patrols and raids conducted by U.S. troops fighting terrorists in Iraq. | |
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Dean Esmay: When done listening, you might want to read this Jay Fitzgerald piece on Yon. |
Glenn Reynolds: NICE STORY ON MICHAEL YON in the Boston Herald. |
The elite doesn't understand the South By / Townhall.com — Permalink I'm known to write occasionally that the rest of America doesn't understand the South. Now comes some clear and convincing evidence. As fate would have it, InsiderAdvantage, the company that I lead, just this week purchased the long-established Washington, D.C.-based Southern Political Report. | |
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Jesse Taylor: Matt Towery, however, has to use this as an opportunity to bitch about how everyone hates the south. |
Roger Ailes: After giving his company a free plug and touting some bogus insider scoops, inbred hillbilly Matt Towery uses Hurricane... |
Extraordinary Problems, Difficult Solutions WaPo — Permalink First they have to pump the flooded city dry, and that will take a minimum of 30 days. Then they will have to flush the drinking water system, making sure they don't recycle the contaminants. Figure another month for that. | |
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Tom Maguire: The WaPo has a story on some short-term rebuilding challenges in New Orleans; the NY Times talks to some urban planners for a longer view (and provides a cheery Berlin comparison). Captain Ed: Today's Washington Post looks at the catastrophe that Katrina has created in New Orleans and the prognosis for its recovery — and the message appears relentlessly negative. Orin Kerr: Unreal: The Washington Post has a powerful news analysis piece on the future of New Orleans. |
Tim Shey: Hugh B. Kaufman, a senior policy analyst at the Environmental Protection Agency, in an article about the challenges of... Gary Farber: The contaminants: "Even then, there may be nothing normal about New Orleans, because the floodwater, spiked with tons... |
Critical U.S. Supply Line Is Disrupted By / WaPo — Permalink The effects of the monster storm that devastated the Gulf Coast spread through the nation's economy yesterday, disrupting shipping and rail networks and sending prices for lumber, coffee and other commodities soaring. | |
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Jack Cluth: That '70s Show at the gas pump: in which oil companies hold us by the cojones — Gasoline futures surge to record high... |
Tyler Cowen: Will the unique position of its Mississippi port guarantee its future? Or will the destruction of the Garden District herald the beginning of the end? |
War on the Mississippi Newsweek — Permalink Can America marshal the resources to fight battles in Iraq and rebuild the Gulf Coast? A political storm is brewing. The views expressed in these external links do not represent the views of NEWSWEEK. What's this? | |
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Lorie Byrd: That is what I am doing to the Howard Fineman article about the Katrina flooding. A reader emailed me that I might want to take a look at it. Stephen Green: Cheap Shot(s) Well: [snipped quote] That's the usually-respectable Howard Fineman, writing for Newsweek. |
Streiff @RedState: No less a personage than the exquisitely coiffed Howard Fineman baldly carries the water for the Left: National Guard... |
New Orleans cops ordered to stop looters By / AP — Permalink NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Mayor Ray Nagin ordered 1,500 police officers to leave their search-and-rescue mission Wednesday night and return to the streets to stop looting that has turned increasingly hostile as the city plunges deeper into chaos. | |
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Riggsveda @Corrente: Trapped in the city, waiting for days on rooftops or forced back inside flooded buildings without lights or air... John @AmericaBlog: New Orleans cops ordered to abandon search and rescue and focus instead on looters — Ok, how bad is it getting when the... |
Betsy Newmark: It is to the point that they have to take the police off of rescue missions and start arresting looters. Rich Lowry: NEW ORLEANS COPS ORDERED TO STOP LOOTERS — NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Mayor Ray Nagin ordered 1,500 police officers to leave... |
Television Finds Covering Area Hit by Storm Is Like Working in a War Zone By / NYT — Permalink After struggling with enormous logistical problems trying to cover the calamity caused by Hurricane Katrina, television news organizations moved yesterday onto what one executive called a "war footing." Photographs and Video from a devastated city. | |
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Jim Romenesko: TV execs: Covering Katrina is tougher than reporting war — New York Times Bill Carter writes: "The news channels have... |
Brian Stelter: Katrina Ratings: Evening News #'s Up — "Along with the cable news networks, audiences for the broadcast networks' regular evening newscasts are up, the New York Times notes. |
Beslan mourns a year after siege By / BBC — Permalink People in Beslan are beginning three days of mourning to mark a year since gunmen laid siege to a school demanding an end to the war in Chechnya. The remembrance ceremonies will start a year to the minute after the attack began in the southern Russian town. | |
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USMC_Vet: How quaint. Remembering the children of Beslan: Beslan mourns a year after siege. Judith Weiss: Atrocities revisited — Today is the anniversary of the terrorist attack on Beslan. (via Michelle Malkin) |
Gateway Pundit: Family and friends of those killed and injured will join former hostages at the charred, crumbling shell of School Number One. |
President Outlines Hurricane Katrina Relief Efforts White House — Permalink THE PRESIDENT: I've just received an update from Secretary Chertoff and other Cabinet Secretaries involved on the latest developments in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. As we flew here today, I also asked the pilot to fly over the Gulf Coast region so I could see firsthand the scope and magnitude of the devastation. | |
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Tacitus: The President's lackluster afternoon address yesterday was followed by a truly disastrous Good Morning America interview this morning. Faiz @ThinkProgress: "Our citizens must understand this storm has disrupted the capacity to make gasoline and distribute gasoline," Bush said. Arianna Huffington: Instead, he jetted on to Washington for a brisk 9-minute Rose Garden speech designed to let us know that his... |
Joe Gandelman: President George Bush responded to the crisis and he has already been criticized for his response. James Joyner: The president's speech was hardly inspirational, but it certainly conveyed the gravity of the crisis: "As we flew here... |
City of Nature By / Slate — Permalink In retrospect, the idea was so stupid and yet so American: Move the homeless, the elderly, the impoverished, the unlucky, all those poor souls who couldn't get out of New Orleans in time to avoid Hurricane Katrina; move them into the city's cavernous domed football stadium. | |
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Tom Maguire: Site And Situation — Good background on the geography and hydrology of New Orleans from Ari Kelman in Slate. John Cole: The geography of New Orleans Interesting piece on the realities of the New Orleans situation: New Orleans is utterly... Cliff May: MAYBE SOMEONE HAS ANSWERED THIS ... But if so, I haven't seen it and it wasn't in the otherwise excellent Slate story. |
Joe Gandelman: Meanwhile, Slate's Ari Kelman notes that New Orleans has been poised on an environmental cliff for years: "In... Tyler Cowen: What ever happened to Pompeii? Here is a short essay on the natural geography of New Orleans. Jesse Walker: In Slate, Ari Kelman explains why so much of New Orleans was built below sea level. Craig's List is helping Katrina's victims find housing. |
| Also: Josh Marshall, Rich Lowry, Dave Pell | |
Katrina's Awful Wake Opinion Journal — Permalink Eighty percent of New Orleans is under water, and large parts of Mississippi lie in ruins. Hundreds, maybe thousands, are dead; thousands more are still at risk for their lives. In the weeks and months ahead, there will be time to draw the appropriate policy lessons from America's worst natural catastrophe in decades. | |
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Betsy Newmark: The Wall Street Journal has a catalogue of some of the blame game that is going on now and I'm sure it is just the beginning. |
Rich Lowry: AGAINST RECRIMINATION — That's the point of this WSJ edit. It also has this: "Yet the facts are these. |
British ally largely indifferent to U.S. Plight By / National Post — Permalink LONDON - If British Prime Minister Tony Blair had not been vacationing in the Caribbean yesterday, it seems a safe bet he would have announced to the world that Britain feels deep sympathy for its freshly wounded ally, the United States. He might have been wrong. | |
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McQ: I guess we deserved it — Canada's "National Post" reports that all in all, Britons on the whole seem to think New... Ed Driscoll: Talk About Taking Things "Day By Day" — Michelle Malkin writes that "The World Comes Around (Sort Of)" to helping... |
Michelle Malkin: (More at Steve J.'s) *** Sheesh: British ally largely indifferent to U.S. Plight; No tributes, memorials... "If British... |
Thousands Feared Drowned in New Orleans By / AP — Permalink NEW ORLEANS - With thousands feared drowned in what could be America's deadliest natural disaster in a century, New Orleans' leaders all but surrendered the streets to floodwaters Wednesday and began turning out the lights on the ruined city — perhaps for months. | |
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Acidman: holey moley — This absolutely terrible. I didn't think something like this could happen in the USA. But it did. Chris @AmericaBlog: New Orleans police to abandon search and rescue missions — It's amazing how out of control the city has become due to the lack of National Guard troops to maintain law and order. |
Michelle Malkin: Shawn Wasson at BareKnucklePolitics calls attention to this harrowing story filed in the last hour that details the... James Joyner: New Orleans Police Told to Stop Looters (AP) [snipped quote] As outrageous as looting is, especially under these... |
How is Canada helping its southern neighbour? National Post — Permalink TORONTO — Canadian leaders are offering to send help to the United States in the aftermath of the devastation wrought by hurricane Katrina. Ontario is looking into whether its medical and search-and-rescue personnel can help, while B.C.'s urban search... | |
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Arthur Chrenkoff: Canada is one of them. Australia is also "looking at ways of providing assistance". Chuck Simmins meanwhile is keeping tabs on Americans helping Americans. |
Michelle Malkin: Would be nice to know which 10-12, wouldn't it? Update: Canada was one of those offering aid. |
965 dead in Baghdad stampede CNN — Permalink BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) — Deaths mounted steadily in northeast Baghdad after a massive midday Shiite religious procession erupted into a chaotic stampede Wednesday, causing the drowning and trampling deaths of 965 pilgrims. | |
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Suzanne Nossel: Fire on a Crowded Bridge: Iraq's Deadliest Day — Dead_from_the_bride As many as 1000 people died today in a stampede in... Chris @AmericaBlog: Hundreds killed in Baghdad bridge disaster — The numbers are sketchy now but the low end is 300+ and CNN is reporting well over 600 dead. |
Justin Gardner: CNN also has more about the pilgrims. |
The day Arizona was in the eye of Hurricane George Arizona Republic — Permalink I'm guessing that Monday, Aug. 29, 2005, will not be remembered as the day President George W. Bush stopped by a retirement community in El Mirage to discuss prescription drug benefits for seniors. | |
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Pessimist @LeftCoaster: The day Arizona was in the eye of Hurricane George "As nice as it was to have the president visit the state we live in,... |
Michael @AmericaBlog: New Storm Warning: Brewing Anger Over Bush's Indifference To This Disaster — An Arizona columnist shakes his head in... |
Senate Panel Plans Hearing Into Reports on Terrorist By / NYT — Permalink WASHINGTON, Aug. 31 - The Senate Judiciary Committee announced Wednesday that it was investigating reports from two military officers that a highly classified Pentagon intelligence program identified the Sept. 11 ringleader as a potential terrorist more than a year before the attacks. | |
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Captain Ed: Able Danger: Hearing Will Be Public — Arlen Specter raised the ante yesterday when announcing the scheduling of the... |
Tom Maguire: Able Danger - Mark Your Calendars — Able Afficianados should mark Sept 14 on their calendar - Sen. Specter has told the... |
UN official says Katrina among worst natural disasters Reuters — Permalink WASHINGTON, Aug 31 (Reuters) - Hurricane Katrina could easily dwarf the devastation of other recent natural disasters in terms of pure economic costs, the U.N. emergency relief coordinator who oversaw the Asian tsunami relief effort said on Wednesday. | |
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Arthur Chrenkoff: The State Department says that some 10 to 12 countries (plus the United Nations, if that counts) have offered actual assistance. |
Michelle Malkin: KATRINA: THE WORLD COMES AROUND (SORT OF) ***scroll down for updates*** United Nations Undersecretary-General Jan... |
New Orleans Police Ordered to Halt Looting By / AP — Permalink (08-31) 17:55 PDT New Orleans (AP) — Mayor Ray Nagin ordered 1,500 police officers to leave their search-and-rescue mission Wednesday night and return to the streets to stop looting that has turned increasingly hostile as the city plunges deeper into chaos. | |
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Michelle Malkin: Another updated dispatch: "Looters also chased down a state police truck full of food. Donald Sensing: Marksmanship required for nursing home staffs — SFGate reports on looting in New Orleans, "Managers at a nursing home... |
Michael DeBow: According to the AP, the mayor of New Orleans "ordered 1,500 police officers to leave their search-and-rescue mission... |
CNN: Heartbreak and destruction in small towns and large CNN — Permalink What Is This? On the way out of New Orleans, it looked like the dust bowl. You've seen the pictures of the dust bowl, of people piled onto the backs of tracks and moving their lives. That's what is happening here. It's extraordinary to witness. | |
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Brian Stelter: She said this on the network on Wednesday: "On the way out of New Orleans, it looked like the dust bowl. Kathryn Jean Lopez: PRESIDENTIAL PRESENCE — On CNN.Com, from a CNN reporter: "We did see tree removal trucks, electric trucks. |
Justin Gardner: Small Towns Destroyed By Hurricane Katrina — The stories about Hurricane Katrina keep getting worse. |
Four Indicted in Alleged U.S. Terror Plot By / AP — Permalink LOS ANGELES — Four men, including the head of a radical Islamic prison gang, were indicted on federal charges of plotting terrorist attacks against military facilities, the Israeli Consulate and synagogues in Los Angeles. | |
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Jonah Goldberg: The prison plot announced in yesterday's poorly-timed news conference is really a big story and — I know from *ahem*... |
Jayson @PoliPundit: The Enemy Within — Within our prisons, that is. Oh, BTW: What's the over/under on how long it will take before the ACLU files some kind of anti-profiling lawsuit? |
Lost in the Flood By / Slate — Permalink I can't say I saw everything that the TV newscasters pumped out about Katrina, but I viewed enough repeated segments to say with 90 percent confidence that broadcasters covering the New Orleans end of the disaster demurred from mentioning two topics that must have occurred to every sentient viewer: race and class. | |
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Randall Parker: New Orleans Demonstrates Power Of Race Taboo In America — Writing for Slate Jack Shafer notes that TV newscasters steer... Gary Farber: Jack Shafer points out the press ignoring all issues of race and class. Read The Rest Scale: 3.5 out of 5 for the last. Terry Heaton: Jack Shafer at Slate does an excellent job of pointing this out in a column called Lost in the Flood. I encourage you to read it. |
Paul McLeary: This morning, Jack Shafer of Slate pens a piece on a topic CJR Daily has been hammering home all week — that of the... Jesse Taylor: Anyway, Jack Shafer has a piece on how the overwhelming blackness of the victims of the hurricane is going largely uncommented upon. Montag: The Poor Didn't Get Out in Time — Katrina Rescue There is an article on Slate today about the apparent reticence in the... |
| Also: Jane Galt, Garrett M. Graff, Jim Romenesko, Steve Antler, Tim Cavanaugh, Brian Stelter, John Derbyshire, Felix @MemeFirst | |
Katrina and Disgusting Exploitation By / TCS — Permalink A profound tragedy is unfolding in New Orleans, the most beautiful city in America, with the richest cultural history and the most wonderful style of living. I lived in New Orleans for seven years. I was married there. My children were born there. | |
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Sterling @MemeFirst: James K. Glassman, to whose photo Eurof wanks off, is correct (for the first time since November, 1987) that blaming Haley Barbour is crazy and stupid. TheAnchoress: And so does this guy. Seminarians based in NO are safe and helping about 100 others stay safe. Just thought I'd post positive news. Philip Chaston: James Glassman, over at TCS, quotes some of the "environmental extremists" who wrote before they thought. |
Brian Keegan: And here's a dupe of Glenn's link to some graphs: EU Rota And here's an excerpt from a James Glassman editorial from big bad TCS. Ace: Over at Tech Central Station, James K. Glassman similarly deadpans, "Yes, no flood or storm or hurricane could possibly... John @PowerLine: It doesn't take a physicist to figure out that hurricanes are hardly an artifact of current carbon dioxide emissions, as... |
| Also: Nick Gillespie, Steve Bainbridge, MarkInMexico, Larry Kudlow, Glenn Reynolds, Lorie Byrd, Andrew Sullivan, Ed Driscoll, John Hawkins, Jonah Goldberg | |
"No One Can Say they Didn't See it Coming" By / DER SPIEGEL — Permalink In 2001, FEMA warned that a hurricane striking New Orleans was one of the three most likely disasters in the U.S. But the Bush administration cut New Orleans flood control funding by 44 percent to pay for the Iraq war. | |
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John @PowerLine: Blumenthal authored this disgusting piece in the German magazine Spiegel. McQ: Sid Blumenthal had to go all the way to the German publication Der Spiegel to condemn the President and the... Dr. Steven Taylor: Playing Politics with Katrina — To read this: Former Clinton Advisor: "No One Can Say they Didn't See it Coming" one is... |
Phillip Martin: Sidney Blumenthal, a former Clinton advisor, reports that the administration cut New Orleans flood control funding by 44 percent to pay for the Iraq war. Justin Gardner: From Der Spiegel: [snipped quote] Now, the points in the article are mostly valid, but the timing is so hideous it makes me want to throw things. Radley Balko: Given that a Category 4 or higher hurricane hit on New Orleans was identified in 2001 by FEMA as one of the three most... |
| Also: Alcibiades @KesherTalk, Kathryn Jean Lopez | |
Mayor: Katrina May Have Killed Thousands By / AP — Permalink NEW ORLEANS - Hurricane Katrina probably killed thousands of people in New Orleans, the mayor said Wednesday — an estimate that, if accurate, would make the storm the nation's deadliest natural disaster since at least the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. | |
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Patrick: Now, of course: The governor of Louisiana says everyone needs to leave New Orleans due to flooding from Hurricane Katrina. Justin Gardner: The mayor of New Orleans fears that thousands are dead as a result. [snipped quote] Please…pray, pray, pray. Jack Grant: The hurricane Katrina... ...cut a swath of devastation through the Lousiana, Mississippi, and Alabama coasts that may have resulted in the deaths of thousands in New Orleans alone. |
Tim Shey: One of the greatest challenges will be supporting all the people displaced from New Orleans, which increasingly is... Steve Soto: He's Monitoring The Catastrophe - From A Mile Up — As the mayor of New Orleans tells us the worst, that in fact there... Alcibiades @KesherTalk: UPDATE from Judith: The mayor is reporting that thousands may have been killed: "an estimate that, if accurate, would... |
| Also: James Joyner, Laura Rozen, Joe @AmericaBlog, Plutonium Page | |
President Commemorates 60th Anniversary of V-J Day White House — Permalink THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all. Thanks for the warm welcome. It's good to be back in California. Good to be here at North Island. This is the birthplace of naval aviation, and I want to thank you for making this son of a naval aviator feel right at home. (Applause.) | |
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Cindy Sheehan: (George Bush, August 30, 2005 in San Diego.) So it is official, Casey had his blood shed in Iraq for Oil. Steve Bainbridge: Here's what the President actually said: "If Zarqawi and bin Laden gain control of Iraq, they would create a new... Conor @ThinkProgress: But in comments yesterday at California's North Island Naval Air Station, Bush rolled out a new rationale for why we... |
MarkInMexico: UPDATE 1: AfterDowningStreet.org - featuring the poor, addled Cindy Sheehan, mumbling about this - "George is finished... McQ: It seems that Bush, in his 60th Anniversary of VJ day speech said this: [quote] "If Zarqawi and bin Laden gain control of...[end quote] Avedon Carol: Things to see — I thought such a suggestion was supposed to be tin-foil hat stuff, but George Bush delivers a new reason for why we invaded Iraq - and it was about oil! |
| Also: Mimus Pauly, Gateway Pundit | |
Blogger Faces Lawsuit Over Comments Posted by Readers By / WSJ — Permalink In a legal case being watched closely by bloggers, an Internet company has sued the owner of a Web log for comments posted to his site by readers. Traffic-Power.com sued Aaron Wall, who maintains a blog on search engine optimization – tactics... | |
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Joe Gandelman: Blogging is a new frontier in the Info Explosion Age but if a lawsuit goes the "wrong" way it could put a damper on... Justin Gardner: David Kesmodel of the Wall Street Journal breaks it down: [snipped quote] I've been waiting for this to happen, and it finally has. Gary Farber: BLOGGER SUED OVER READER COMMENTS. A case to watch. Read The Rest as concerned; at least I can't be sued over comments I don't get. |
James Joyner: Blogger Faces Lawsuit Over Comments Posted by Readers (WSJ) [snipped quote] Obviously, Wall should be accountable for... Juan Cole: Weblogging Liability — The question of whether Weblog owners are legally liable for comments made by readers could be settled by a current lawsuit. Andrew Sullivan: A BLOGGER'S NIGHTMARE: A law-suit against a reader's comment. |
Buses prepared to bring Superdome refugees to Astrodome Houston Chronicle — Permalink NEW ORLEANS — As water continued to rise in New Orleans and Army engineers struggled to plug breached levees with giant sandbags and concrete barriers, Texas officials have worked out a plan to bring up to 23,000 refugees from the Superdome to Houston's Astrodome. | |
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Jack Cluth: The Astrodome is preparing to take in 23,000 refugees for who knows how long. Joe Gandelman: So bad that, the Houston Chronicle reports, "(as) water continued to rise in New Orleans today, Texas officials have... Charles Kuffner: The top story in the Chronicle is that the refugees currently being housed in the Superdome will be coming to Houston. |
Brian Maloney: Refugees moving to Houston's Astrodome. --- Cindy Sheehan even more unhinged on Bush, oil prices and Katrina. Michelle Malkin: Evacuees from the Superdome will be moved to the Astrodome. BlogHouston is up-to-date on the latest community efforts to welcome the evacuees. Scared Monkeys: 23,000 Super Dome refugees boarding buses for Astrodome to escape the heat, lack of food water and sanitary conditions of the SuperDome. |
Hurricane Politics Newsweek — Permalink Aug. 31, 2005 - On Tuesday, President Bush called an abrupt end to his five-week "working vacation" at his Texas ranch and announced he would return to the White House two days early to oversee federal response to the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. | |
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Nico @ThinkProgress: As Newsweek reported this morning, it had nothing to do with Hurricane Katrina: "Just one week ago the White House... John @AmericaBlog: Newsweek blasts Bush's non-response to hurricane — Uh oh, someone in the media is doing their job... "Beyond the poll... |
Susie Madrak: Three days to respond to the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. (But hey, cut him some slack - he was on the last week of his month-long vacation!) |
Bush gives new reason for Iraq war By / AP — Permalink CORONADO, Calif. — President Bush answered growing antiwar protests yesterday with a fresh reason for US troops to continue fighting in Iraq: protection of the country's vast oil fields, which he said would otherwise fall under the control of terrorist extremists. | |
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Brad DeLong: Bush gives new reason for Iraq war - The Boston Globe — So the intervention in Iraq was about oil after all: Bush... Justin Gardner: Boston Globe Burns Bush On Iraqi Oil — I just read the headline "Bush gives new reason for Iraq war" and was intrigued. Echidne: She swallowed the goat to catch the dog She swallowed the dog to catch the cat She swallowed the cat to catch the bird... |
Susie Madrak: Reason du Jour Bubble Boy comes up with something closer to the real reason to explain why we're at war in Iraq: ... Taegan Goddard: President Bush, quoted by the AP, giving yet another reason for why we went to war in Iraq. Link | Related News James Joyner: Katrina: President Bush to Tap Strategic Petroleum Reserve — In response to the devastation of the Louisiana coast... |
| Also: Digby | |
At Least 600 Shiite Pilgrims Killed in Panic on Tigris Bridge By / NYT — Permalink BAGHDAD, Iraq, Aug. 31 - More than 600 people were killed and hundreds injured this morning when rumors of a suicide bomber led to a stampede in a vast procession of Shiite pilgrims as they crossed a bridge on their way to a shrine in northern Baghdad. | |
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Gateway Pundit: Update: Death Toll to reach over 1,000! ** Over 640 are believed to have died in the stampede today! John Cole: More Horrific News This is, quite simply, horrifying: More than 600 people were killed and hundreds injured this... Dr. Steven Taylor: Tragedy in Iraq — Via the NYT comes what would be the major story today were it not for Katrina: At Least 648 Shiite... |
Stephen Elliott: Meanwhile, at least 800 Iraqis die after a stampede caused by a rumor of a suicide bomber. Could things be worse? Jan Haugland: Baghdad stampede kills more than 800 — Fear of terror tragically kills more people than any terrorist attack has managed. Jack Grant: In the face of tragedies...in more than one place, with large scale terrors where hundreds die or widespread horrors... |
| Also: Plutonium Page, Gary Farber, Kevin Drum | |
Governor: Everyone Must Leave New Orleans By / AP — Permalink NEW ORLEANS - The governor of Louisiana says everyone needs to leave New Orleans due to flooding from Hurricane Katrina. "We've sent buses in. We will be either loading them by boat, helicopter, anything that is necessary," Gov. Kathleen Blanco said. | |
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MarkInMexico: Rising Hegemon , responding to this article - "He may be disciplined in getting his R&R but he's just a lazy mother-f**ker to me." Champollion: While matters in Iraq worsen, while the Mississippi delta is in ruin, let's not forget the souls of the departed... Dr. Steven Taylor: 12 to 16 Weeks — My word: Governor: Everyone Must Leave New Orleans [snipped quote] Wow. 3 to 4 months. h/t: The Glittering Eye |
Joe Gandelman: An this AP report notes a message from the governor of Louisiana: Get out of New Orleans now: "NEW ORLEANS (AP) - The... Jeralyn Merritt: From Superdome to Astrodome: Mandatory Evacuation — The Governor of Lousiana has ordered a mandatory evacuation of the... |
Did New Orleans Catastrophe Have to Happen? Yahoo! News — Permalink PHILADELPHIA Even though Hurricane Katrina has moved well north of the city, the waters may still keep rising in New Orleans late on Tuesday. That's because Lake Pontchartrain continues to pour through a two-block-long break in the main levee, near the city's 17th Street Canal. | |
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Arianna Huffington: It was as if by piling so many disparate numbers so high he might be able to block out the two most significant numbers... Ezra Klein: Larnin' — This Editor and Publisher article on whether or not Katrina had to happen this way is great. |
Jayson @PoliPundit: And Editor & Publisher already has started in with the predictable Bush bashing concerning pre-Katrina infrastructure spending. Rich Lowry: LEVEES AND BUSH — We'll be hearing more about this line of argument I'm sure: "Over the next 10 years, the Army Corps... |
20 oil rigs missing in Gulf of Mexico: US Coast Guard AFP — Permalink WASHINGTON (AFP) - At least 20 oil rigs and platforms are missing in the Gulf of Mexico and a ruptured gas pipeline is on fire after Hurricane Katrina tore through the region, a US Coast Guard official said. | |
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Steve Soto: AFP reported this afternoon that at least 20 oil rigs and platforms are now missing in the Gulf of Mexico, and have presumably been destroyed and fallen to the bottom of the sea. |
Justin Gardner: 20 Oil Rigs Gone — Not that it really matters right now, but I fear that gas prices are going to go through the rough. |
U.S. Poverty Rate Was Up Last Year By / NYT — Permalink WASHINGTON, Aug. 30 - Even as the economy grew, incomes stagnated last year and the poverty rate rose, the Census Bureau reported Tuesday. It was the first time on record that household incomes failed to increase for five straight years. | |
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John @PowerLine: The New York Times headlined the story: "U.S. Poverty Rate Was Up Last Year". Steve Antler: Who needs EconoPundit anyway? Powerline explains what's wrong the the NYT's fix on Census Poverty statistics. |
Gal Beckerman: The Web sites of the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and USA Today didn't allow the AP piece trumpeting the good news to bump the poverty story from the main headlines. |
Mayor blasts failure to patch levee breaches CNN — Permalink NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) — A day after Hurricane Katrina dealt a devastating blow to the Big Easy, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin on Tuesday night blasted what he called a lack of coordination in relief efforts for setting behind the city's recovery. | |
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James Joyner: Mayor blasts failure to patch levee breaches (CNN) "A day after Hurricane Katrina dealt a devastating blow to the Big... Josh Marshall: No Coordination |
Kevin Drum: Witt resurrected FEMA's reputation and turned it into a highly respected agency, but via email, Franklin wonders if the... |
Pfizer vs. al Qaeda NRO — Permalink Give me a break. How's this for a plot? There's this international conspiracy to acquire nuclear weapons and kill millions of Americans. The conspirators act with the aid of various governments, some of which pretend to be our friends. | |
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Ed Driscoll: Hollywood's Moral Relativism — Jonah Goldberg looks 21st century Hollywood's moral relativism: [snipped quote] Nahh—just on the left. Betsy Newmark: Jonah Goldberg wonders why Hollywood is quite happy to make movies where American corporations such as the drug... |
Roy @Alicublog: Jonah Goldberg. Don't bother with the rest of the column, which is one of those rightwing evergreens about how Hollywood Hates America. |
Unrest grows in flooded New Orleans CNN — Permalink NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) — As parts of flooded New Orleans slip into chaos and Gulf Coast communities struggle to deal with the devastation left by Hurricane Katrina, Louisiana's governor is declaring Wednesday a day of prayer. | |
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MarkInMexico: Corrente, responding to this article - "Because drowning his (Bush's) own people isn't enough for him: his plans also include suffocating them, too." Steve Clemons: The National Guard has been called out in New Orleans — and I would imagine in Mississippi and Alabama. Natasha @PacificViews: As of this posting, these are some of the latest situation reports. |
La Shawn Barber: [Or has it? ] As usual, lawlessness has broken out, and people are stealing food, clothing…and computers. James Joyner: Unrest grows in flooded New Orleans (CNN) "As parts of flooded New Orleans slip into chaos and Gulf Coast communities... Laura Rozen: More. National Guard trucks haul residents seeking refuge through floodwaters to the Superdome. (Credit, CNN). |
| Also: Riggsveda @Corrente | |
New Orleans Is Now Off Limits; Pentagon Joins in Relief Effort NYT — Permalink NEW ORLEANS, Aug. 31 - Search and rescue teams in helicopters and boats braved the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina today to look for survivors in the battered city of New Orleans, which was isolated and virtually submerged after water broke through two levees on Tuesday, and efforts were being made today to stanch the flooding with sandbags. | |
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Steve Soto: If the President declared Louisiana a disaster area back on Monday, why was this major effort only kicking off late... Stirling Newberry: New Orleans has been declared off limits, and military rescue teams are being flown in from as far away as California. |
Joe Gandelman: As New Orleans has been declared off limits, the Pentagon is reportedly stepping in, according to the New York Timesf Tom Maguire: New Orleans — The NY Times has extensive coverage of the hurricane, including this on New Orleans. |
Day-After Pill Decision Prompts a Resignation AP — Permalink WASHINGTON — A high-ranking Food and Drug Administration official resigned Wednesday in protest over the agency's refusal to allow over-the-counter sales of emergency contraception. Susan Wood, director of FDA's Office of Women's Health, announced her resignation in an e-mail to colleagues at the agency. | |
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Echidne: Neither did I. But she is a woman of principles, and she used to work for Bush's Food and Drug Administration: [snipped quote] But it's ultimately a fairly powerless act. Armando @DailyKos: Diogenes Hits Paydirt: A Principled Bush Administration Official — FDA Official Resigns Over Politicization of "Morning... |
Gary Farber: THE DAY AFTER, YOU RESIGN. That's what you do when you can't abort an indefensible policy. Matt Singer: Principled Administration Official Resigns — New York Times reports: [snipped quote] She cites the politicization of... |
New Orleans Mayor Says Katrina May Have Killed Thousands By / LAT — Permalink NEW ORLEANS — Hurricane Katrina most likely killed thousands of people in this beleaguered city, the mayor said today as officials prepared to close down New Orleans and evacuate 25,000 people from their deteriorating shelter at the Superdome. | |
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Randy Paul: Hat tip to my brother JB. This, by the way, is in a word, horrifying: [snipped quote] It's summertime. |
Kevin Drum: MAYOR: "MOST LIKELY THOUSANDS" DEAD IN NEW ORLEANS....If this turns out to be right, it's truly unbelievable: [snipped quote] Good Lord. |
Newspaper That Had Warned Of Disaster Lives Own Prophecy By / WSJ — Permalink Three years ago, the New Orleans Times-Picayune won journalism awards for an exhaustive five-part series called "Washing Away," which began with the words: "It's only a matter of time before south Louisiana takes a direct hit from a major hurricane. | |
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MarkInMexico: Main Page Save Louisiana - invade Canada The Wall Street Journal points to this report which is a must-read before... Jan Haugland: New Orleans paper that predicted hurricane disaster now lives it — Joe Hagan on the hurricane as a predicted disaster:... Jim Romenesko: Times-Picayune's 2002 five-part series warned of disaster — Wall Street Journal The paper's "Washing Away" series... |
Kevin Roderick: Maybe they deserve a retroactive Pulitzer. Read the series. Story today in the Wall Street Journal. Laura Rozen: From Romenesko: [quote] Times-Picayune's 2002 five-part series warned of disaster Wall Street Journal The paper's "Washing...[end quote] |
The War Among the Democrats By / Weekly Standard — Permalink ON AUGUST 16, ELIZABETH Edwards, the wife of the failed vice presidential candidate, sent out an email. She urged recipients to sign an online petition in support of Cindy Sheehan, the bereaved mother of a 24-year-old soldier who was killed in Iraq last year. | |
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Betsy Newmark: Matthew Continetti has an article today about the "war" in the Democratic Party. |
TheAnchoress: She gives Jonah's thoughts on Hollywood a nice showcase and then moves to the meat and potatoes stuff, linking to Matthew Continetti's piece on the war among the democrats. |
Flooding will only get worse By / New Orleans Times-Picayune — Permalink The catastrophic flooding that filled the bowl that is New Orleans on Monday and Tuesday will only get worse over the next few days because rainfall from Hurricane Katrina continues to flow into Lake Pontchartrain from north shore rivers and streams, and east... | |
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Joe Gandelman: And there are now predictions that due to rainfall and water back up the flooding in New Orleans over the next few days will actually get WORSE. Lambert @Corrente: Katrina: Flaming oil on troubled waters — Expanding on Riggsveda's earlier post (back) read to the end to get the real nightmare scenario: [snipped quote] Savage irony, eh? |
Riggsveda @Corrente: The Times-Picayune has outlined a nightmare scenario of things to come. |
Hands Full, Officials Are Helpless Against Looters AP — Permalink NEW ORLEANS (AP) — With law officers and National Guardsmen focused on saving lives, looters around the city spent another day brazenly ransacking stores for food, clothing, appliances — and guns. Photographs and video from one of the most powerful storms ever to hit the Gulf Coast. | |
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Matthew Yglesias: A lot of the coverage of looting in New Orleans seems to fail to draw some necessary distinctions — or, worse, is... Gary Farber: THE LOOTERS are in force: [snipped quote] Looting food and survival equipment (including diapers) is one thing, and... |
Fontana Labs: On the other hand, people stealing guns is sort of a problem. Louisiana: it's the state...of nature! |